These pictures were taken at AT&T Park on May 12, 2006, as part of the pre-game ceremony for Willie Mays’ 75th birthday. Willie Mays is one of my all time favorite players. It was great to watch the festivities for his 75th birthday.

It is a great blessing that Willie Mays could celebrate his 88th birthday this week on May 6. Willie Mays has been retired for 46 years – after the 1973 season.

Birthdays are a reminder how fast time goes. It did not seem that long ago I was at AT&T Park watching Willie Mays stand on the field and be honored by all the fans. We need to honor those whom we respect in our lives.

Who in your life can you show respect today? Make someone’s day by showing respect.

This was the scope of the technology for the phone to the bullpen at Candlestick Park. When the manager or pitching coach wanted to call down to the bullpen so a relief pitcher could start warming up, this wall telephone was it. This photograph was taken in the late 1980’s.

I’m sure there are some younger folks or children who never saw one of these old phones. It is interesting to contemplate the evolution of the telephones. At least, this one had push buttons instead of the old dial.

Now practically everyone is carrying some sort of smart phone with the ability to surf the internet, call folks, text contacts, stream media, listen to music and whatever functionality an app can provide.

It is nice to reminisce about the old fashioned phone – when a phone was just a phone. Candlestick Park represents a simpler time. We could enjoy a baseball or football game and just focus on the game. We could enjoy a good time with those who attended the game with us. We did not look at our cellphones to see our emails, look up something on the internet or text other friends.

What is our lesson from Candlestick Park? Maybe we should try to focus a little more on the primary task at hand. Can we just focus to watch the SF Giants play baseball now without looking at other distractions?

Let’s try it and see what it is like to focus only on the SF Giants play baseball.

This place does not exist anymore in physical form. It does exist in our memories and pictures.

The Glow is back-lit sunlight streaming through the door windows and cracks of a set of double doors to a lost ballpark that was demolished in 2015.

This is the entrance to the lower reserve and lower box section behind home plate at Candlestick Park. This was about two hours before game time for a SF Giants game.

My wife said this photo reminds her of something from the “The Twilight Zone”. It makes you curious and a little afraid to find out what is on the other side of the double doors. The glow makes you fearful to discover the cause for the glow.

A good photograph causes people to think and use their imagination when contemplating the meaning of the image. It should make people think beyond what they physically see in the image.

Here’s 2 views of the same scoreboard with the welcome to Candlestick Park.

I shot the scoreboard as I was walking behind the general admission section. The second shot occurred right in front of the scoreboard .

It is interesting how the old scoreboard had many bulbs embedded on the sign. It was about 30 to 40 ft wide. I can imagine there were lots of bulbs to give the different lettering, numbers, and patterns for the scoreboard.

It is always a good idea to shoot an object from different positions as I did with the scoreboard. The different shots of the same scoreboard show the dimensions for the bulbs when looking up versus looking from the side. From the side, the scoreboard shows a little bit of wavy texture due to the bulbs. Looking up, lining up the bulbs gives a polka dot effect.

Next time you see something interesting you want to take a picture of, take a few photos from different angles to see all the perspectives of the object.

This photograph was taken at Candlestick Park in 1989. As my practice, I arrived early to watch batting practice and shoot photos. The grounds crews were removing the batting practice cage and preparing the field for the game.

I took this photo as the sun was below the horizon. Twilight gives a special effect on a photo. It softens the photograph with the diminishing light. It gives a slight gloom effect.

Candlestick Park at twilight gives a subtle darker look to this stadium. I love the traditional stripes on the field too.

Welcome to Moraine Lake in Alberta, Canada. It is a glacially fed lake in Banff National Park. This picture was taken in July 2013. It does not reach its crest until mid to late June. The blue in July was very pretty. But when the lake is full, it reflects a more distinctive shade of blue.

As we reflect on Earth Day, it is important for us to take care and preserve our world. Changes in all of life are a part of life. Even in our human bodies, there is constant change. Sometimes we need to accept what we can preserve and what we cannot control and stop change.

One thing I appreciate about photographs is the image is preserved especially now with digital files. We can freeze nature’s beauty at a particular point in time for almost eternity. When we see a pretty scene, it will probably only last for a brief time. But if we are fortunate to capture the picture with our camera, we can be blessed to recall the image.

We hope Moraine Lake will continue to be a beautiful place to visit. It has one of the most freshest water in the world. The lodge at the lake is self-sufficient and generates it own power. Moraine Lake is a good example for Earth Day by practicing the principles of reduce, re-use and recycle to protect it’s beauty. Let’s seek to follow this example in our own space.

Here is the huge cross that is on top of Mount Davidson in San Francisco. It is an amazing cross where worshipers come annually to celebrate the resurrection of Christ! This year, 500 people are expected to attend an early sunrise service at this cross. It is only lit up on Easter and on April 24th – the Armenian Genocide Memorial Day.

The Cross is also a memorial for the victims of the Armenian Genocide in 1915 as the above sign indicates. The Council of Armenian-American Organizations of Northern California – is the legal owner of the monument Cross.

What is the true meaning of the Cross as we celebrate Easter 2019? It represents the unjust crucifixion of a man – Jesus Christ. He was not just an ordinary man but also the Son of God. His death was an injustice. He was not a criminal. He committed no crimes. He was whipped, tortured, and humiliated. He hung on the cross and sacrificed Himself for the sins of the world.

The Armenian people remembered by this cross also suffered injustice and died without cause.

I am fortunate to have watched the Giants at Candlestick Park, AT&T Park, Pac Bell Park, and now Oracle Park.

I went thru my photographs to compare the different Scoreboards at really the two ballparks.

Interesting to note – Candlestick Park’s scoreboard was simple. It did not display all the information that we see today. It may have been wider with the advertisements. The baseball stats were compacted into the space.

Pacific Bell Park’s scoreboard was probably the same as the AT&T’s scoreboard. The Pacific Bell Park sign is on the bottom of the scoreboard.

Did you notice there is an added structure surrounding and above the same San Francisco Giants clock where the signage for AT&T Park was displayed? There are a bunch flags waving on the top also.

Oracle Park’s new scoreboard is bigger. It looks like they added to the top structure for advertisements and got rid of the old name. The flags are still waving on top. They also added more advertisement on the side light posts. By moving the advertisement to peripherals, it provides more space in the center to nicely display the stats.

So which scoreboard do you prefer comparing the scoreboards thru the years? Hopefully the SF Giants will dominate in their scoring this season.

This might be a preview of Triples Alley at Oracle Park. This photograph was taken on April 21, 2015, at AT&T Park. This was during batting practice when Triples Alley was fenced off for fans to hang out in this area before a SF Giants game.

The SF Giants are considering fencing off Triples Alley and putting the bullpen there. When a batter hits a ball toward this corner which is very difficult, it usually results in a triple. The deep right field corner is 421 feet. Any decisions about Oracle Park’s configuration will take at least a few years.

Bruce Bochy’s opinion is open minded about the change feeling if someone can hit a ball 400 feet, it should be a home run.

Is it wise to recognize when goals are out of reach and need to be adjusted to be more realistic? Analyzing what can be fairly achieved in the game of life is hard to comprehend. Goals can be assumed to be unattainable until the attempts are performed. Reaching a goal thought as unattainable can also be a wonderful surprise and achievement.

For the SF Giants, will removing Triples Alley make the game of baseball a more even playing ground at Oracle Park?

Like this:

Here are more photographs of the grounds at Filoli Gardens. I used my wide angle zoom lens to shoot the first 3 pictures above. The contrast in the colors with the yellow tulips and lavender flowers is pretty.

The 2nd photo shows the swimming pool. I went to Filoli Gardens at the invitation of good friends. My friends grew up visiting these gardens since their grandfather was a chef for the residents. My friends swam in this swimming pool as children. It was a luxury for the friends to spend an afternoon at this estate. The good memories are relived when they return to visit this garden.

In the 3rd photograph, it almost looks like the gardens are endless. I could have spent a lot more time walking and shooting photographs at Filoli Gardens.

The last photo is interesting with all the green moss growing on the circular container surrounded by the potted bright orange tulips.

The gardens were beautiful when I visited. But if you go on Mother’s Day, there will be an abundance of flowers on display. In the mansion, each room is filled to the max with beautiful arrangements. Filoli Gardens has a wonderful display of flowers that any mother would appreciate.

Hope you will consider spending precious time with your mom and treat her to an afternoon at Filoli Gardens to celebrate her.